Could a DC Film and TV Crossover Actually Happen?

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In many ways, it's the holy grail of modern DC fandom. In a world in which most of our favorite superheroes now have both TV series and movies, not to mention comic-books, animations and a vast array of merchandising, there's only really one truly improbable dream for us to yearn for: the crossing over of DC's TV and Cinematic universes.

With the Marvel Cinematic Universe being - in theory, at least - fully connected, with the impact of the movies being felt on the small screen (and very occasionally vice-versa), a similar arrangement with DC has long been lusted after by fans. As things stand, though, the only connectivity we've seen has been within the CW's Arrowverse, and that has been limited to the network's three shows (and, perhaps, Constantine).

Could We Finally Be Set to See DC's TV and Cinematic Universes Crossover, Though?

That is certainly what DC super-fan (and filmmaker) Kevin Smith seemed to suggest in the latest edition of his Fat Man on Batman podcast, in which he discussed his recent hosting of the CW's recent DC Films Presents: Dawn of the Justice League special with DC creative head honcho Geoff Johns. As Smith put it:

"We did a piece where we talked about -- I don’t know how much I’m supposed to say because they cut it out...But the idea [came up] of, 'Hey man, DC is known for nothing if not a multiverse,' so at which point I was like [to Johns], 'Could they fucking crossover?' And he was like, 'Ahh.' So doors are being left open and stuff like that."

Or, in other words? Those dreams of seeing Grant Gustin and Ezra Miller play The Flash on screen alongside one another aren't as out there as they have often been made to seem. As Smith noted:

"Think about this, you can have Ezra Miller be the Flash and you could also have Grant be the Flash, because there’s a multiverse at work."

Which actually makes a whole lot of sense. After all

The Multiverse Would Make a Movie/TV Crossover Both Straightforward...and Much Less Problematic

In comic-book form, DC's Multiverse developed over many decades, largely as a result of DC comic books' tendency to inadvertently create major plot holes in its leading character's back stories. Eventually, it became so large that DC opted to dissolve the thing altogether for the sake of narrative simplicity (though parts of it have since returned to continuity).

In on-screen terms, though, that same problem - over-complexity - would in fact act as the main selling point for creating a Multiverse. After all, multiple film and television universe's already exist - from Gotham's young Batman, through to the DCEU, via the Arrowverse, Supergirl and countless other shows - so the potential for fan confusion is already there.

Were DC to insert a story-line into one of its movies however (The Flash's solo movie would seem an obvious choice), it would be possible to introduce the idea of the Multiverse to non-comic-book-reading fans, and explain that all of the TV show's are simply different universes within a greater Multiverse.

Throw in a couple of cameo's from the likes of Grant Gustin's Flash, Melissa Benoist's Supergirl and a junior Bruce Wayne from Gotham (or characters from whichever shows are still around at that point), and not only would ratings likely go up on the TV side, but the film's would also be able to dodge the potential risks that come with certain key heroes having already become established on television.

Or, alternatively, DC'll just keep ignoring the problem until it goes away.